NAME

O-SAFT / fetchfile

DESCRIPTION

Introduction
With the server protocol extension O-SAFT (Offer Simple Asynchronous
File Transfer) and the matching client fetchfile there is an easy
method of retrieving files from a SAFT server. This is a direct analogy
to the SMTP and POP or APOP protocol suite in the world of e-mail
transfer.
Overview:
- How does O-SAFT/fetchfile work?
-Whattodoontheclientside?-Whattodoontheserverside?-Howaboutsecurityissues?HowdoesO-SAFT/fetchfilework?
O-SAFT is an extension to the existing SAFT protocol and allows
athenticated clients to retrieve files from a (remote) server. The
implemention is the server sendfiled and the client fetchfile.
O-SAFT uses a dedicated pgp key pair to authenticate the fetchfile
session. The private key will be kept on the client side, the public
key must tbe present at the server side. For security reasons this will
NOT be your regular e-mail pgp key pair, but a separate pair of pgp
keys, uniquely assigned for fetchfile transfers. You will have to
create a pair of pgp keys for this purpose befor using the fetchfile
client for the first time (see below).
Fetchfile can provide a directory listing of available files from the
server, retrieve files or delete files. After retrieving a file, it
will be placed in the regular spool directory, not in the current
directory! You will have to use the receive command to transfer the
files from the spool directory to your current directory afterwards.
If there already exists a regular sendfile spool directory
/var/spool/sendfile on the client side it will be used, otherwise a
$HOME/.sfspool will be created. Fetchfile will be running without using
root permissions on the client side.
Whattodoontheclientside?
You must have pgp-2.6.x installed and the binaries must be available
through your $PATH environment variable.
First, and ONLY ONCE before using fetchfile the very first time, you
have to create a fetchfile pgp key pair (only pgp-2.6.x is supported!):
fetchfile-I
Please only hit 'ENTER' when being asked for a pass phrase! This will
create a special non-passphrase protected key pair for O-SAFT.
After this initialization you will have a file
/var/spool/sendfile/$USER/config/public.pgp resp.
$HOME/.sfspool/public.pgp
Please send this file to root@SAFT-server, who has to save this public
key file into the appropiate user configuration directory.
Example:
sendfile-c'myO-SAFTpuplickey'/var/spool/sendfile/$USER/config/public.pgproot@bofh.belwue.de
(This prelimary action will enable you to use the SAFT server and will
prevent othes from abusing your name or SAFT-account on the server.)
After preparing the pgp keys an both sides, you can invoke fetchfile on
a regular basis:
fetchfile-l
list files on the server
fetchfile-a
retrieve all files from server
fetchfile-daf*aol.com
delete all files from the AOL domain
There is a detailed description of all capabilities in the
fetchfile(1) man page.
For configuring the server SAFT account by the client user there
are two options:
fetchfile -Cw=config
fetchfile -Cw=restrictions
Using this the two local configuration files will be transfered
from the local current directory to the SAFT server. The details
of the configuration can be found in the sendfile(1) man page.
With using
fetchfile -Cr=config
fetchfile -Cr=restrictions
the files will be retrieved back and will be displayed to
STDOUT.
Whattodoontheserverside?
pgp-2.6.x must be installed. The system adminsitrator needs to
run sfdconf-econfig add set the following option:
fetchfile = on
The system administrator must create a user account (if
it does not yet exist). This account does not need an
interactive login shell and does not need a valid
password; the login shell could be /bin/false. The only
purpose is to enable the sendfiled to check out the user
and to create a local spool directory (this method is
well known for creating POP mail accounts).
The client user will create the initial pgp key pair and
the public key (public.pgp) will be sent to the system
administrator of the server. This key has to be placed
into the config directory for the particular user.
Assuming the user name is bozo, the system administrator
will have to type the following (under root permissions):
receive -f bozo@* -b bozo public.pgp
su bozo
cd /var/spool/sendfile/bozo/config
receive public.pgp
(the first receive resends the file public.pgp from the
sender bozo@* to the
local user bozo)
Howaboutsecurityissues?
O-SAFT uses a tcp challenge/response authentication with
a pgp signature. This opens the possibility that the
session can be attacked through tcp hijacking. We are
well aware of this, but tcp hijacking is not easy and
only possible if the attacker has direct access to the
transport media (e.g. listening on the same ethernet
cable/segment) and has access to a set of pretty nice
cracker tools. With regular operating system supplied
software it is not possible to attack a session.